* Telefonica O2 Czech Republic <> first-quarter
earnings.
* April 21, after the market close at 1400 GMT
* Net profit seen rising 15 percent year-on-year to 2.65
billion crowns
PRAGUE, April 17 (Reuters) - Telefonica O2 Czech Republic
first quarter net profit <> is expected to have
increased by 15 percent due to lower amortisation and taxes, a
Reuters poll showed on Thursday.
The average estimate in a poll of 10 analysts was for net
profit of 2.65 billion crowns ($171.1 million), up from 2.31
billion in the first three months of 2007.
The biggest Czech telecommunications firm, majority owned by
Spain's Telefonica <TEF.MC>, has seen a gradual decrease of its
amortisation costs after massive investments in its fixed and
mobile networks in the past.
The company should also benefit from a corporate tax cut
which took effect in January, analysts said.
Revenues are expected to be 2 percent higher year-on-year at
15.55 billion crowns, as growing mobile and data services offset
falling demand for fixed lines.
"We do not expect anything else but confirmation of existing
trends," said Ondej Moravansky, analyst at brokerage Cyrrus.
"Despite lower revenues in the most important fixed-line
segment, which is traditional voice services, we expect overall
revenues from fixed lines to have rather stagnated, as the
expected fall should be compensated by revenues from other
activities," he added.
Core profit, or operating income before interest, tax,
depreciation and amortisation (OIBDA), is expected to be 2
percent lower year-on-year due to rising marketing costs and
investments into the Slovak mobile arm rolled out last year, the
poll showed.
Shares in Czech Telefonica, the former fixed-line monopoly,
have lost 20 percent over the last year to trade at 14 times
forecast 2008 earnings (P/E) on Thursday, compared with the DJ
Stoxx European telecoms index <.SXKP> trading at a P/E of 12,
according to Reuters Estimates.
Analysts' estimates for Q1/2008 (in bln CZK):
Average Median Q1-07 Range
Revenue 15.55 15.51 15.18 15.26-16.01
Core profit (OIBDA) 6.93 6.93 7.04 6.52- 7.18
Oper. profit (EBIT) 3.49 3.45 3.19 3.17- 4.04
Net profit 2.65 2.64 2.31 2.42- 2.96
NOTE - The following equity houses took part in the poll:
Atlantik FT, BH Securities, Cyrrus, Erste Bank/Ceska Sporitelna,
Komercni Banka, Morgan Stanley, KBC Securities/Patria Finance,
Raiffeisenbank, Unicredit Global Research, Wood & Co.
(Reporting by Jan Korselt; Editing by Paul Bolding)
